INTERNATIONAL

Israel has stopped publicly referring to Syria’s new president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, as a terrorist, a striking change in tone that reflects the shifting political landscape in the Middle East following the ouster of Bashar al-Assad, New York Times reported. This rhetorical shift, from branding al-Sharaa a jihadist with ties to Al Qaeda to recognizing him as Syria’s de facto head of state, coincides with indirect talks between Israel and Syria, which are underway, according to the New York Times report. It is the most serious diplomatic engagement between the two countries in more than a decade. In the immediate aftermath of Assad’s fall in December 2024, Israeli officials, including Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, had warned that Syria had fallen into the hands of a “terrorist gang,” ...

A damning new report by the United Nations Human Rights Council has spotlighted a range of multinational corporations allegedly supporting Israel's military occupation and ongoing war in Gaza, drawing widespread criticism from human rights advocates around the world. Released on July 1, 2025, the report details how companies across sectors such as technology, military, energy, agriculture, finance, and settlement expansion are directly or indirectly enabling Israel’s operations in the occupied Palestinian territories. Global tech giants under fire Leading US-based technology companies such as IBM, Microsoft, Alphabet (Google’s parent company), Amazon, and Palantir are accused of supplying critical tech infrastructure, data analytics, and surveillance systems that bolster Israeli secur...

US President Donald Trump has announced that Israel has agreed to the "necessary conditions" for a proposed 60-day ceasefire in Gaza. Posting on Truth Social, Trump stated that Qatar and Egypt would deliver the final proposal and urged Hamas to accept the deal, warning that “it will not get better — it will only get worse.” Trump, who is set to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu next week, said he believed Netanyahu was committed to ending hostilities in Gaza. “I think we’ll have a deal next week,” he said. Israel's UN Ambassador Danny Danon confirmed Israel’s readiness for a ceasefire but said Hamas was "playing hardball." He warned that if negotiations failed, Israel would increase military pressure to secure the release of hostages. Around 50 Israeli hostages are still h...

While billionaire Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, celebrated his multi-day, $56 million wedding to Lauren Sánchez on the private island of San Giorgio Maggiore, Venetians took to the streets and canals in a dramatic protest that targeted far more than just the guest list. Waving banners that read "118,000 shops killed by Amazon" and "Eat the rich"  protestors rallied under the banner “No Space for Bezos”—a grassroots coalition of environmentalists, residents, artists, and former shopkeepers who say Venice is becoming a playground for the ultra-rich at the expense of its people. “Amazon has destroyed local economies across the world, and now its founder is turning our city into a stage for extravagance,” said one protestor. Activists pushed a dummy of Bezos—stuffed with fake cash a...

Syria’s interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa is signaling a surprising openness to normalizing relations with Israel, a development that just months ago would have seemed unthinkable, according to reports appearing in international outlets. According to Middle East analyst Col. (res.) Dr. Moshe Elad, this shift reflects a dramatic change in regional priorities and alliances. “A handshake between Sharaa and Netanyahu at the White House is no longer unimaginable,” Elad said. “It could happen sooner than many expect.” During the recent 12-day conflict between Israel and Iran, Sharaa refrained from interfering as Israeli aircraft used Syrian airspace to carry out strikes. When questioned, he is said to have asked, “With what exactly?” highlighting Syria’s limited military capacity. Elad arg...

After nearly two years of relentless devastation, the massacres in Gaza may finally be coming to an end. Entire families have been buried beneath rubble, hospitals reduced to ash, and a generation of children orphaned under a sky filled with drones. Now, a fragile but historic moment is taking shape—one that could bring the bloodshed to a halt. The world is watching as something shifts. After 632 days of war, Gaza’s silence may no longer be the silence of death, but the first breath of a people long suffocated. A war that burned across borders is nearing its end, and the decisions made in these coming days will ripple across history. But this turning point didn’t arrive on its own. It followed a cascade of pressure—not from the streets of Arab capitals or the halls of the United Nati...

Faced with an unprecedented barrage of missiles and drones from Iran and its proxies, Israel accepted a ceasefire on 24 June, 2025 to halt the spiraling damage to its infrastructure, economy, and civilian life. In just twelve days, the strikes overwhelmed air defenses, disrupted daily life in major cities, and exposed vulnerabilities in Israel’s preparedness for a full-scale regional assault, as per Israeli media. While military officials pointed to high interception rates and tactical success, the scale of civilian suffering and economic loss pushed the government to seek a diplomatic pause through international intermediaries. The damage on the ground was extensive. The damage quoted in this report is from Israeli media. A humanitarian dimension further underscored the intensity...

General Esmail Qaani, commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Quds Force, made a public appearance in Tehran, refuting reports that he had been killed in an Israeli airstrike. Qaani was seen mingling with crowds at a pro-regime rally in the Iranian capital on June 24, in a rare and carefully documented appearance that aimed to end speculation about his fate. The appearance came nearly two weeks after Israeli airstrikes on June 13 targeted Iranian military infrastructure and were widely reported to have killed top commanders, including Qaani. The New York Times had cited unnamed Iranian sources to report that Qaani was among those killed. The Jerusalem Post, along with several other regional and international outlets, echoed the claim, further fueling speculati...

U.S. President Donald Trump issued a sharp rebuke to Israel just hours after reports emerged of a symbolic Israeli airstrike inside Iranian territory, striking a radar installation near Tehran. The strike comes despite a U.S.-brokered ceasefire agreement announced by Trump late Monday, marking a fresh test of the shaky truce between Israel and Iran. In a strongly worded post on Truth Social, Trump wrote: “ISRAEL. DO NOT DROP THOSE BOMBS. If you do, it is a MAJOR violation. Bring your pilots home, now!” He added, "The ceasefire is fragile. We achieved peace after 12 days of bloodshed. Do not destroy it in one night.” The Israeli strike, described by military analysts as “symbolic,” was reportedly limited in scope. According to Israel’s Channel 12, the operation targeted a radar sta...

Today marks three months since the arrest of Syria’s former Grand Mufti, Ahmad Badreddin Hassoun, amid a growing campaign of repression targeting Sunni religious scholars under the country’s new leadership. Hassoun was detained on 25 March 2025 at Damascus International Airport, reportedly while disguised as a patient bound for Jordan to seek medical treatment. According to news reports, at the airport, he was stopped inside the VIP terminal shortly before boarding his flight. The following day, on 26 March, an arrest warrant was issued by the newly formed Attorney General’s Office, accusing him of attempting to flee from justice. Footage and photos shared online appeared to show Hassoun blindfolded and under arrest. Authorities have yet to make any formal statement about his case...